Algae trough

[Paul B]

I don't think too many people use an algae trough, I know a lot of people use lighted refugiums though. The Idea of the trough is that it is free to operate and almost free to build.
It is basically a place for algae to grow which has bettter growing conditions that your tank. I use a 4" PVC fence post from Home Depot and I sliced it horizontally which created a tray about an inch and a half deep. I installed it on a slight angle at the rear and top of my tank so it is slightly under the MH lights and it also shields the back of the tank from light which gives a nice effect.
Water is added to the trough on the higher side from the skimmer return, then it traverses the 6' to the other side of the tank to be gently let back into the water over a screen so there is no splashing. The plastic windod screen is in the entire length of the trough which makes cleaning excess algae easy.
I also infused cement on the screen, algae grows great on cement.
The trough has three purposes. one is to remove excess ozone which I use in my skimmer.
Two is to give algae a better place to grow than my reef. It has better growing conditions because it is very shallow and very well lit.
The third reason is that I leave some algae growing in there to help purify and oxygenate the water.
The thing has been in operation for about 5 years or so and since I installed it I have never had an outbreak of hair algae which I used to get every few years.

 

[Phyl]

I would love more details on the build of this. Like how did you apply the cement? How did you use the fence posts and what is the screen made of?How do you remove the screen for cleaning? How much of it do you clean at a time? Thanks for sharing it with us!

 

[Paul B]

Phyl, the screen is plastic window screen from any hardware store. I first sanded it by putting it on a table and using medium sandpaper on it to roughin it up a little.
Then I mix a little Sakrete mortar mix and smear it on. Very little sticks but it makes algae grow much faster.
The fence post is about $12.00 and is 4" x 4". I sliced it in half with a circular saw.
The screen can be rolled up from one end and removed for cleaning. If it is full of algae I just scrape it in the sink with a credit card or plastic scraper. Then I roll it back in the trough.
There is usually a thin growth of algae in there which I want in my tank.

 

[Phyl]

How is this different from (or similar to) the current rage on "turf scrubbers"? It seems quite similar, with a few differences.

 

[Paul B]

How is this different from (or similar to) the current rage on "turf scrubbers"? It seems quite similar, with a few differences.

It works on the same principle that algae is healthy to have in a tank with a few minor differences. First off it is free to operate and takes no space. It uses waste light that would go to illuminating the rear of the tank where I don't want it and algae prefers to grow in it due to better growing conditions than the tank. The water is fast moving and only a half inch deep. The trough is about 4" from the main MH lighting so it is lit better than the tank. The screen is easy to remove If i want to remove the algae and it uses nusience algae instead of macro such as caulerpa.
The screen has cement on it to stimulate nusience algae growth only on the screen.